RSRL Harwell to inspect control of occupational radiation exposure to asess compliance with Regulation 8 of the IRR99

Site: Harwell

IR number: 14-130

Date: September 2014

LC numbers: 100

Executive summary

Purpose of intervention

To inspect control of occupational radiation exposure to assess compliance with Regulation 8 of the Ionising Radiations Regulations 1999.

Interventions Carried Out by ONR

The intervention was undertaken as part of ONR’s Control of Occupational Radiation Exposure (CORE) project, which assesses compliance with Regulation 8 of IRR99, which is concerned with the restriction of exposure to ionising radiations so far as is reasonably practicable (SFAIRP).

The standard CORE questionnaire was submitted to, and completed by, the Licensee prior to the site visit. We then discussed the adequacy of the arrangements described in the response with the Licensee and conducted a number of plant visits to determine whether these arrangements were being effectively applied at the point of work.

An overall rating for the adequacy of the arrangements is presented within this intervention record, and a more detailed set of ratings for each of the CORE criterion will be presented in a separate CORE assessment report.

Explanation of Judgement if Safety System Not Judged to be Adequate

N/A.

Key Findings, Inspector's Opinions and Reasons for Judgements Made

The Licensee’s provided its response to the CORE questionnaire prior to the site visit which we reviewed and discussed with the Licensee upon arrival. We reviewed the arrangements for restricting worker exposure to ionising radiation at Harwell and were provided with sufficient supporting documents and verbal evidence to gain assurance that the arrangements complied with the requirements of Regulation 8 of IRR99. Our plant visits confirmed that the Site is broadly applying its arrangements at the point of work.

We were satisfied that the Licensee is complying with its duties under Regulation 8 but identified several matters with the Site to further improve its arrangements. These included:

Modification to high level documentation to include a reference to “Decommissioning”

reviewing and improving understanding of DROs to minimise the potential for misunderstanding and erroneous use

implementation of plans for the review of dosimetry provisions for projects to ensure the are targeted and proportionate and

format and posting of local rules which had already been identified as an issue by the Site Inspector to which we were able to provide further supporting direction.

Conclusion of Intervention

The licensee provided evidence that it is compliant with Regulation 8 of the Ionising Radiation Regulations 1999 to restrict operational exposure SFAIRP, hence the overall rating of adequate.